Shadows of the Heart
by Shari Maxwell
Summary: Duo's life hasn't been the best, but he can't really complain since he's pretty lucky compared to most. But one night is all it takes to change his life forever, when he witnesses something he never should have.
1. Chapter 1

He felt the gun pressed against his temple, and knew it was over. There was nobody around to save him now that he had made that stupid decision.

_'Shit... I'm really going to die!'_

It was such a strange nostalgia; at least he found it to be unusual as he was experiencing his last few moments in life. There were no memories flashing before his eyes from his short life, and he wasn't going through any type of 'phenomenon' as people claimed you would.

"You fucking punk! You're going to get exactly what you deserve for trying to steal from me!" The man was much taller than the young man he was pointing the gun at and it was obvious from his bulky physique that he was capable of self-defense without a gun.

Even as he knew his death was close, Duo continued to stare down the man with taunting amethyst eyes. From his expression it almost seemed like he was daring the man to pull the trigger. The reaction that look caused was rage from the massive man, but since he was so focused on the thief who'd tried to pickpocket him he didn't see it coming.

Duo didn't realize there was another young man there until the gunshot rang throughout the empty street. Blood splattered across his face and body, but Duo was still in shock that it wasn't his head all over the cobblestone road. He scrambled out of the way as the man began to collapse, and Duo got a full view of what was left of his face.

The whole bottom of his face was missing for the most part, and one of his eyes was hanging out of its socket. That image permanently imprinted itself in his mind and he could help but get sick to his stomach. When he was clear of the man he threw up.

"Are you alright?" A voice spoke out to Duo who was attempting to recover and catch his breath.

He looked up and found the young man staring down at him while holding the gun limply at his side. The gun that had blown half of that man's face _off_.

Forcing himself to his feet, Duo stood face to face with the person who had just saved his life. But he couldn't find any gratitude as he looked over at the man lying there in a pool of blood.

He found it odd that the back of his head only had one small hole from the entry of the bullet; while the front of the guy's head wasn't even there.

"Why'd you kill him...?"

Prussian blue eyes met amethyst and Duo could see the confusion in them.

"I saved your life, so shouldn't you be grateful?" The young man slipped his gun into some hidden pocket Duo didn't care to observe. He turned away from the traumatized Duo, "You should clean yourself up or else people will think you murdered him."

It wasn't long after that the guy who'd just saved his life, at the cost of another's, disappeared into the shadows of the night. Leaving him alone at the scene of the tragedy, and he knew that police would be coming soon enough. Perhaps it would've been better if he hadn't run away, instead had stayed to explain what had happened.

But what would he say?

He was about to be shot in the head, and some random guy shot the guy in the back of the head? Nobody would believe a story like that. Not even Duo would believe it if he hadn't just experienced exactly that.

Bordeaux, France was becoming a more attractive city for the more wealthy aristocrats of the early 1800's ever since the building of the Grand Theatre of Bordeaux. Many people were drawn in by the elegant ballets performed and the operas that audiences would exclaim were magnificent. Duo himself hadn't lived there his whole life, and had been drawn in by the hope of becoming somebody great within that theater.

Yet after working there for only a month, he knew there would be no fame given to him. For now his only duties were to tend to the theater to ensure that it was presentable to everyone who came to view the events held there. Duo knew that he wasn't particularly talented, but he was happy at the moment since he was still able to see every show for free.

The hidden downstairs, beneath the stage of the theater, was where Duo and a few other caretakers lived. Each of them had their own tiny room where they were given nothing more than a worn mattress, a supply of candles, and a single bureau for their possessions.

He arrived at the building to find the muses and goddesses glaring at him accusingly, as if he was the one responsible for the man's murder. Duo knew in a way he was because of his stupid idea to try and steal that guy's money. His greed had helped him to make a decision that would alter his life forever.

Hilde was another caretaker of the theater, and was just inside the main doors cleaning up. As she heard Duo enter, her automatic reaction was to turn and smile at her closest friend. Yet when she saw him the smile disappeared, and was replaced by a mixture of fear and worry.

"What happened to you? Are you alright?" Hilde tried to put her hand on Duo's arm, but he recoiled from her touch. That was the type of response that the laid-back Duo never did on normal occasions. "Why are you all bloody? Who did this?"

Closing his eyes, Duo tried not to show his own trepidation. "I'm fine Hilde... I just need to sleep and forget about tonight."

She didn't seem to want to comply with Duo's wish, but knew she couldn't stop him. Hilde still followed Duo downstairs and persisted in questioning him with her silence, but it did no good against Duo. After a while she was forced to leave in order to finish her own work before she was too tired to finish it.

Duo was glad to be left on his own, and now that he was in his sanctuary he could try to figure out what he would do.

_The police are definitely going to be all over this... A murder in this town will make all of the higher-ups wary, and they might even end up offering a reward for whoever turns in that guy._

"What if he comes for me next?" Duo thought aloud as he sat on his mattress. He had lit his candle for light when Hilde was in there, but now he blew it out. "That guy had a fancy gun that I doubt any normal person would be able to afford... Aristocrats like that never have to fear about being caught when they commit crimes, or if he's in the military he has nothing to worry about either."

Once the darkness engulfed the entire room, Duo felt an immediate sense of comfort. His whole life he'd lived in obscurity and had always found to be more at ease once the sun set. The young man lay on his side facing towards the door, and once again was confronted with the image of the man's missing face.

Just the clarity of his face was enough to make Duo retch, even with nothing left in his stomach. He got up and went out into the narrow hall to find a bucket, a rag, and some water to clean up his mess. Once he accomplished the task of finding the items he brought them back to his room and cleaned everything up.

He decided to leave the bucket close by in case it happened again.

As he was lying abed Duo found he was trying to picture what the other young man had looked like. Because tonight was moonless, there hadn't been quite enough light for him to make out the details of the murderer's face. Those eyes were the only thing he could remember, and thinking back on it he noticed there was no murderous intent when he'd looked at the guy.

Maybe he'd really just wanted to save Duo?

It took him ours to fall asleep because his thoughts continued like that for so long. When he was woken up by Hilde, he could tell it was late in the morning. Already Duo could hear someone singing up on the stage as his friend pulled him up.

"Do you know how late it is? I know you're exhausted from last night, but you'd better hurry and clean up before one of _them_ comes down here." Hilde was referring to the two men who owned the theater, and both of them were picky with their workers. Their caretakers woke up at six in the morning and tidied up anything they'd forgotten from the previous night, and they were allowed to go out as late as they wished as long as they were awake on time.

When he looked in the mirror of the washroom he noticed some of the blood was gone, but he had neglected to discard his clothes from the night before. Duo stripped and threw the ruined garments to the side. Hastily the young man washed his body of the dried blood still remaining and then dried himself off.

Hilde had brought him some new clothes and placed them outside the door. Thankfully she always thought two steps ahead of everything when Duo was incapable of doing so.

"_Maxwell!_" One of the owners was banging on the door, and Duo hurried to the door. Before he opened it, he threw the evidence of last night completely out of sight. Bursting into the washroom the stout man shoved his worker against the wall. "What's the meaning of this? This is the second time this week you've slept late! You're not paid to sleep all day!"

Duo picked himself up, "You hardly pay me at all, Monsieur Le Tallec."

Another man followed the pudgy Le Tallec, and towered over the two in the washroom. He was almost the exact opposite of Le Tallec with the fact that he was much thinner, and much taller. He was even much calmer than his partner, but their goals were the same.

"You must remember, _boy_, that you were lucky to even get this job. If it wasn't for Hilde vouching for you then you would've been living on the street like you should be."

Keeping his mouth shut was the only thing he could do whenever Bernier was around. Duo wasn't all that afraid of Le Tallec since he was sure he could outrun the portly old man, but Bernier had already proven once before to some kid that he could catch them and punish them thoroughly.

"Come Tallec, we must go make sure the guests had a splendid time." Bernier ushered his business partner out of the washroom, but remained behind. "Maxwell, immigrants like you don't often have such job opportunities. There are many people on that street just like you who would die to get any sort of income, so don't jeopardize your employment any further."

Duo waited until both men were completely out of sight before snatching the clothes up from the floor. "I'll just dump these outside and nobody will ever see them again."

"How'd it go?" Hilde popped up from around the corner as Duo was exiting the bathroom. She glanced curiously at the clothes in Duo's arms, but didn't really question it.

"The usual... I honestly think that those two are just waiting for a real excuse to get rid of me. But let's not talk about those two anymore." Duo was followed by Hilde all the way to the back of the theater where he threw the clothes onto the pile of trash waiting to be removed. "By the way, I wanted to thank you for cleaning up my mess all the time lately. I feel horrible how everybody always has you do it when I'm not around."

"If you're really sorry Duo Maxwell, you'll stay here for once and clean it up yourself." She wagged her finger at him with mock sternness. As they began to head back inside the theater she asked him the question he'd been dreading. "Are you going to tell me about what happened last night?"

The silence was answer enough for Hilde as she smiled and shook her head.

"Someday you'll learn not to be so secretive. I have to go now, I'm sure they'll be expecting me to treat their most important guest personally."

Duo grabbed her arm as she was about to leave, "Let me do it. You've been working your ass off all last night and this morning. Go ahead and take a break, and I'll take care of the royal pain in the ass."

Hilde didn't have time to say anything as Duo ran into the building. He immediately headed for the stairs to the balcony since he knew which one all of the guests of the day sat. As expected, Le Tallec and Bernier were already there talking to their invitee.

"Mademoiselle Relena, we know you'll get the best service from our best employee Hilde." Le Tallec introduced who he expected was Hilde, and when he laid eyes on Duo his entire face turned purple. "Excuse me; apparently you'll have another of our excellent employees Duo."

Duo thought that Relena didn't look like ordinary aristocrats. Every time he'd been in the presence of the wealthy they always turned their noses up as if he was disgracing the air they were breathing by being there. Instead she stood up and did a small curtsy before shaking his hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," She had a benevolent presence about her, and a kind smile. Something Duo didn't experience often and was glad to finally meet someone who didn't look down upon him.

"The pleasure is all mine." He grinned and his bosses left then. "Is there anything I can get you during the intermission?"

Relena sat down in her seat and looked thoughtful for a moment. "Actually, my bodyguard has been gone for a while now. Perhaps you can go check on him? He tends to wander around, and sometimes he forgets to come back."

_Why would anyone hire a bodyguard like that? I thought they were supposed to stay by the person's side and protect them at all times._

Duo didn't say any of his thoughts out loud and was about to go in search of the man when Relena stopped him.

"Oh, his name's Heero. I'm sure you'll be able to find him right outside the building or close by. Sorry for the inconvenience again." She sounded sincere as she said it, and it made Duo feel awkward.

"Listen, it's my job. You're making me feel weird being so nice!" Duo winked at her and then took off down the staircase. He really wanted to help Relena for some reason, and he chalked that up to that charisma that surrounds her. Once he was down on the front steps he looked around for a guy who looked like a bodyguard. "Let's see... anyone out here look like they'd have the name Heero?"

"My name's Heero, what do you want?" A voice asked from behind Duo and startled the young man. He whipped around and found himself face to face with the person who apparently was Heero.

Duo backed up a few steps and ended up bumping into some woman who was walking with her husband into the theater. The woman cried out in pain even though she'd barely been bumped, and this provoked an angry reaction from the husband.

"Watch where you're going you wretch," He turned his nose up just like Duo was used to seeing, and Duo decided to just apologize and get it over with.

What he didn't expect was Heero's reaction to the man. "Don't blame him for an accident he couldn't prevent."

"You have no right to talk to _me_ like that!"

Duo was going to tell Heero to forget about it, but the glare the bodyguard gave the man and his wife scared the off. He couldn't believe somebody had actually stuck up for him.

"Thanks for that..." He couldn't explain why he was so embarrassed to thank Heero, but he could feel his face getting hot. "Listen Mademoiselle Relena is waiting for you in the balcony... If you're supposed to be a bodyguard why did you leave her all alone up there?"

"Why are you blushing?"

Duo groaned and began pushing the bodyguard back towards the door, "Aren't you worried that she'll be kidnapped while you're out here?"

Heero didn't respond or object as Duo pushed him to the staircase. The two of them walked up side by side and Duo still felt that his face was flustered. He couldn't figure out why he was acting weird around Heero.

Relena seemed glad to see Duo and Heero, and she thanked Duo for bringing her bodyguard back. The two of them seemed to enjoy the rest of the show and they didn't ask Duo to do much. Once the performance ended and everyone was leaving, Le Tallec and Bernier checked up on Relena, Heero, and Duo.

"Did he do a satisfactory job? If not we'll be happy to fire him." Le Tallec bowed to Relena as he spoke.

"No, actually I'd like to request him tomorrow as well." Relena smiled at the shock all over Le Tallec's face, and Duo had to struggle not to laugh.

"Of course, he'll be on time tomorrow." Bernier covered up his partner's mistake as he bid farewell to one of his favorite customers. "You'd _better_ be here on time Maxwell, or I will throw you out."

Duo rolled his eyes and headed to his room, and went looking for Hilde. She was in her room reading some book she'd probably bought with the money she was saving up. "How'd it go?"

Sighing Duo plopped down on the mattress beside Hilde, "Actually it went rather well, except for this one thing..."

Hilde snapped the book shut, "What do you mean? Do you like Relena Peacecraft?"

"Where would you get that idea?"

"You're _blushing_ Duo," Hilde smiled at him teasingly but also it seemed a little sad.

"Actually I don't think it was her, I only got this way around her bodyguard... Shit, I'm a real freak now." Duo put his head in his hands, "If Bernier and Tallec find out I like men they'll definitely get rid of me."

"Listen Duo," she put a hand on Duo's shoulder. "I promise not to tell anyone about it so don't worry."

Duo didn't say anything, he was just glad to have a good friend like Hilde. Especially since he'd just told her the one thing that could potentially make him a permanent outcast. "Do you swear?"

"What would I get out of making you lose your job? You're really special to me Duo, and it's a rare thing to meet a person like you." Hilde smiled as she stood up, "Another show is about to start, do you want to watch? Or would you rather just wait here?"

Staring at the ceiling, he wasn't sure what he wanted to do at that moment. Forcing himself to sit up, Duo grinned at the young woman standing by the door. "Nah, I think I'll go have a walk around outside. Get some fresh air and maybe spend what little money I have on me."

As far as he knew it was going to be some ballet, and he wasn't very interested in that sort of thing. Plus he'd already watched the most of a ballet that morning with Relena and Heero, so he was ready to get out of the stuffy theater. There was a small market place right around the corner that was sure to have some interesting things on display.

He made his way out the back entrance and then joined the rest of the crowd on the street. Duo loved being outside whenever possible, and that was why he always disappeared at night to go have some time alone. Yet he found himself hoping to see Heero just randomly, and tried to convince himself how impossible that kind of desire was.

_What are the chances of Heero wandering around out here? After all he does have a job as a bodyguard and _most_ likely will be with Relena._

Duo found himself attracted to a shop that sold items of the 'occult', or supposedly that's what they sold. When he entered the store the only light was from several candles scattered around instead of using the now popular gaslights.

Nobody besides him was browsing through their merchandise, so he quickly set about to see if anything was worth his money. Duo stopped as he a necklace caught his eye. As he approached it a woman popped up beside him, "Please refrain from stealing my things."

"Where the hell did you come from?!" Duo observed the woman, but her face was hidden beneath the hood of her cloak. "I'm guessing this is your shop by the way you're dressed up. And I wasn't going to steal anything."

"Would you like your fortune read? I will give _you_ a reading for four francs if you're interested." The woman gestured towards the back of the shop where Duo could see a wooden table and two chairs. "Will you take me up on my offer?"

"I guess, but I don't believe in that shit so don't expect me to be wowed by it." Duo followed the woman reluctantly and sat down across from her.

She pulled out a deck of tarot cards and began to lay them out. After doing so carefully, she proceeded to read the cards.

"It seems that you're confused about something major in your life and that your love life is in turmoil at this moment. You must beware of any temptations that could have the potential of ruining your chances of finding true love as this might be the most important time to look for a lover." She was about to continue, but Duo stopped her.

He stood up and threw the money on the table, "I don't have the time to listen to this. My love life isn't in turmoil because it's _nonexistent _right now."

Making his way toward the door, the woman called out for him to stop and he obliged her request.

"Do not be too reckless because you think true love is an easy thing to recover. Once it is lost, there is hardly any chance of you to find it again."

Her warning went unheard as Duo had left, not wanting to listen to the ramblings of some con artist wasting his time. As the young worker was going back to the theater he noticed that Hilde was sitting against the side of the building in a defeated slump. As Duo approached her, he noticed something was wrong with her.

Hilde wasn't breathing.

----

**Okay, first off I don't want any Relena or Hilde bashers to flame me for putting them in here. I actually love the two of them (even though Hilde died...) because they're two of the best female anime characters I've seen. So if you're going to rant about how much you hate them, then don't bother reading anymore.**

**Now that I got that out of the way! I guess I should explain a little bit. Obviously I put this in France and I'm setting it around the early 1800's, but I want to state it clearly for everyone that all of this is _not_ historically correct. It's pretty simple to figure it out from the fact that they didn't have guns like Heero used in the beginning and there are other things that you can see aren't from the time period.**

**But there really is a city in France called Bordeaux and there really is a Grande Theater of Bordeaux (which was constructed in 1781 or something). So there are some facts in the story, but I'm not writing this to be exactly like it was back then.**

**In any case, I hope this chapter was enjoyable for readers. **

**Please R&R!**

**Shari Maxwell**


	2. Chapter 2

As expected Duo wasn't thinking rationally once he'd figured out his best friend was dead. That's why he'd picked her up from where she was sitting and carried her inside the theater, and that's why he put her on his bed. For some reason his mind kept telling him that she'd wake up soon enough and that she would appreciate being brought inside.

But hours passed and she never woke up, and the sun rising told him it was a new day. There was no explaining why this temporary fit of insanity had led Duo to believe that a person no longer breathing was still alive, but somehow it had and he was incapable of thinking sensibly. When Bernier and Le Tallec came looking for Hilde, he told them she was feeling ill.

"What do you mean ill? That woman never gets sick!" Tallec favored Hilde out of all of his employees, and often relied on her for any job he considered especially important. "I demand to see her right now!"

"Sir, please... Hilde's asleep and I'm not sure if what she has is contagious. The last thing I would want is for one of you two to get sick as well." Duo gave a polite bow to the men and it puzzled them. Duo Maxwell had _never_ showed any real manners in their presence except when he was first hired. "I will take care of any work that Hilde needs to finish or whatever you were going to assign her to do."

"Fine, but make sure it gets done this time." Bernier guided the portly man up the stairs, but before they'd completely disappeared from view Bernier turned around. "Which reminds me; Relena Peacecraft will be here this afternoon and has requested you again. Be ready in one hour, and greet her outside."

Duo waited until there was no one around before going back into his room.

_'She's not going to come back to life by just staring at her. You might as well give her some courtesy and properly bury her.'_

"Hilde can't be dead; I didn't even watch the show with her. I should've just stayed with her and maybe she wouldn't have died." He slumped down to the floor with his back against the wall. His elbows were on his knees, and Duo's head was limply resting against the wall. "If I hadn't been so selfish and left..."

'_Then stop being selfish now and stop insulting her like this. Hilde deserves to be buried in a real cemetery and given a proper place for people to visit her. Not to be lying on your bed rotting.'_

Duo forced himself to stand up and blow out the candle he'd lit earlier. He left the room and made sure the door was firmly closed. Nobody was going to find Hilde like that; not while she looked so vulnerable.

While he was going upstairs the situation he was in reminded Duo of the famous story, '_The Tale-Tell Heart'_. Though Duo hadn't murdered Hilde like the narrator of that story had, and it brought his train of thought to a question he was dreading.

'_How did she die? Was she murdered like that man...?'_

The nauseating image flashed before his eyes once again, and Duo restrained himself from throwing up right then. The last thing he needed was to displease Relena while she was watching the show with his current attitude. So he forced himself to put on a grin as he greeted the young aristocrat and her bodyguard once again.

"Do you guys come watch the shows every day?" Duo avoided looking directly at Heero and focused more on Relena. "I'm sure someone of your status must have something better to do."

"Not really, all I ever get to do is sit around and watch my father conduct his business. He is unable to understand that I could help him with his work, but I don't want to be a bother to him so I leave him alone." Relena sighed and then gave a small pout that most people wouldn't have shown to only an acquaintance. "Duo you know you don't have to be so formal. I'm your age and I don't see why you should treat me like an old woman."

"Sorry, it's habit when I'm working." Duo glanced over at Heero and found the bodyguard staring at him. "Do you mind if I take care of something really quick, mademoiselle?"

"Go ahead, and stop calling me that! Just call me Relena," she smiled as she watched Duo take off downstairs.

Duo was able to make his way downstairs without running into either of his bosses, and felt immense relief once in his own room. Hilde was still exactly where he'd left her, even though Duo had still had some hope that she might be alive.

He hadn't intentionally left the door open, but Duo hadn't made a point to close it either.

That's why it took him by surprise to find Heero observing him from the doorway. Duo couldn't believe he had been so careless and allowed _him _of all people to find him with a dead woman in his bed. Being a bodyguard Heero could shoot Duo on the spot and claim he'd seen Duo murder her.

But he didn't reach for his gun. Heero didn't even blink as he laid eyes on Hilde's corpse.

To Duo's astonishment, Heero actually left the room without saying a single word to him. He stood up and went over to Hilde, and Duo felt himself become hollow at the sight. Duo felt as if everything inside of him had just melted away, and all that was left was this strange feeling in his chest.

As if everything had been carved out of his skin and now Duo was only filled with the air he breathed.

"I promise tonight I'll get you out of this wretched theater..." Duo wasn't sure if it was disrespectful to Hilde that he wasn't crying. He did feel like mourning for her, but the tears wouldn't come.

The whole time Duo knew her, he had always attempted to not show any weakness. It might've been a habit of his, but there was something that had always made the young man strive to not burden Hilde.

Heero was leaning against the wall when Duo emerged from the room, and closed the door quietly. Neither of them spoke as they began their ascent of the staircase, and Duo kept his eyes studying the wall to his left. Before they rejoined Relena, Duo grabbed onto Heero's arm and pulled him aside.

"Please swear to me that you won't speak a word about what you saw. I know it doesn't look very good from your viewpoint, but you have to trust me when I say I didn't kill her." Duo had a hard time reading whether there was even a reaction from Heero.

Heero leaned in so close that he was only inches from Duo when he spoke. "I swear I won't tell your secret."

When Heero's lips brushed against his own, Duo had been sure the bodyguard was going to kiss him. But Heero had turned away at the last second and began going up to rejoin Relena. Duo was left behind as he was still trying to figure out what had just happened.

Duo made himself follow Heero to be greeted by Relena at the top of the stairs.

"I hope you'll forgive me, Duo. You didn't seem to be feeling well so I asked Heero to help you if you needed it." Relena smiled apologetically and then sat down. She offered the seat beside her to Duo, "Would you like to sit with me?"

He shook his head to decline Relena's offer, and Duo felt bad about doing so. The only real reason he hadn't accepted it was because Heero would be standing right next to him. Just having the bodyguard that close would make him uncomfortable, but Relena didn't want to take no for an answer.

"Please sit with me; I'm sure you'd love the opportunity to get off of your feet for a couple hours." Relena stood up and gently grabbed Duo's wrist. She led him over to the seat and then took her own once again. "Just try to enjoy the show, and I promise I won't tell those snobby bosses of yours."

Reluctantly sitting down, Duo could already tell that it was a bad idea. Even now Heero's presence was making him fidget in his seat just as the show was beginning, and he couldn't imagine sitting for two hours like this.

Somehow he managed the incredible feat, and Heero hardly even moved the whole time. It seemed that in Relena's presence Heero wouldn't be bold enough to make a move, and Duo was thankful for it.

"I won't see you tomorrow Duo because my father is taking me on one of his business trips for a couple of days. So I hope you start feeling better." Relena curtsied for Duo, and Duo returned it with a bow.

Heero just stood behind Relena and seemed lost in his own thought. Duo tried to not glance at Heero as they were leaving, but he did just for a brief moment. Heero had apparently glanced at him at the same time, and Duo hastily whipped his head around and made his next destination his room.

Since it was only the afternoon, Duo checked on Hilde once again and then went off to clean the stage for the next show. His fellow co-workers continued asking where Hilde was, but he ignored them. Nobody had to know where Hilde was; because tomorrow they would all find out she'd left Bordeaux in search of better work.

That would be the story Duo would use because he couldn't think of anything else he could really say. Even though it wasn't a thorough explanation, none of the other caretakers had any real reason to question Duo about Hilde.

After cleaning up various areas for hours, Duo finally got his chance close to midnight to take a break. He intended to make full use of this small opportunity to go down to the cemetery with Hilde and give her a proper grave. His only problem now was how to carry the body out without drawing suspicion.

In reality there was no possible way to accomplish this task, because it isn't everyday you see someone walking down the street with a dead person. Yet Duo knew he had to risk everything to do what needed to be done.

So he waited until he knew that all of the other caretakers of the theater were off enjoying their own time off from cleaning. Duo carried Hilde in his arms in plain view of the world, but somehow he managed to escape the theater without being seen. Taking the back exit was the only choice, and so he ended up in the opposite direction of his destination.

_'The only way I have even a slim chance of not being caught is to use the alley network...'_

Ever alert, Duo ran down each dark alley he could find to avoid any possible contact on the main road. Everything was going well, and he even managed to make it to the cemetery without bumping into anyone. His next obstacle was a guard making sure nobody entered the graveyard.

"Why the hell would they station a guard for a place full of dead people? There are plenty of live people that probably need that protection more." Duo asked Hilde. "I suppose I'll just have to take the chance of making a distraction, but how the hell am I suppose to do that?"

That's when a miracle beyond reason occurred, as Duo was about to try the only plan he could think of, Heero appeared. Heero somehow was able to keep the guard completely unaware of his presence as he sharply hit him across the head with a blunt object. When the guard fell to the ground, Heero glanced over in Duo's direction as if he expected him to come out.

Duo was hesitant of trusting Heero, even if the bodyguard had never done anything to make him that cautious. He was helping a guy carry a dead woman into a cemetery in order to bury her.

This isn't the kind of a thing a bodyguard does everyday.

"Why are you helping me with something like this?" Duo asked as he stepped towards Heero.

"She was a close friend of yours, right?" Heero walked into the cemetery first, but wouldn't proceed any farther until Duo began to follow him.

Duo had no choice in the matter, so the two of them began to walk down the stone pathway. "That doesn't mean you have to help me. We just met yesterday; I don't see why you would even want to be associated with this kind of thing."

The two of them went to the back of the cemetery immediately, knowing that an unmarked grave would be too suspicious if it were towards the front. Duo was looking for an area that he felt would be appropriate for Hilde. He found an open space near the back corner where there were hardly any graves yet.

Heero had thought ahead of Duo, and apparently had brought shovels with him. As he went to go and get them, Duo got some time alone.

"I still don't know what happened to you Hilde, if you were murdered or not... But I swear to you, that if you were murdered in cold blood, I _will_ avenge you." Duo heard Heero approaching and was then handed a shovel. He began to dig when he noticed Heero assisting him, "You don't have to do anything Heero. This is something _I_ need to do."

"This isn't the kind of burden you carry alone," Heero began to help anyway and Duo decided not to bother trying to convince him to stop.

The two of them worked together on digging the grave, it took them until almost dawn. A couple of times Heero went to go check on the unconscious security guard, but the man didn't even stir the entire time.

In Duo's opinion the hardest part had to be lying Hilde down in that grave and knowing that this was the reality he had to live with now. She really did die, whether it was murder or not wasn't important at that moment. He just wanted a few seconds to say a few words, but they didn't have the time.

Because of the rush they were in, the two managed to finish replacing the soil in just an hour. As they were leaving, the guard was finally waking up, but they knew he wouldn't even realize what had happened.

After walking for a while Duo decided it was time to go back to the theater and get a little bit of rest.

"Listen Heero, thanks for helping me... but you can't ever speak of this." Duo avoided looking directly at Heero, "I have to get back to the theater before somebody actually notices I'm missing."

Heero grabbed his wrist to stop Duo from leaving, "Don't blame yourself for her death. From what I can tell it doesn't seem like anybody killed her, she might have died of some disease she was unaware of."

"I'll keep it in mind..." Duo jerked away from Heero feeling a sudden wave of anger.

_'Hilde couldn't have died from some disease, she was too strong for that.'_

When he arrived back at the theater, Duo found a group of his coworkers outside the building in a huddle. Once they heard Duo approaching one of the men quickly whipped around and glared at him.

"What's going on? Why is everyone gathered out here?" Duo was a few feet away from the rest of them, and he didn't intend to get any closer.

"Where have you been all night?" The same man asked him.

"I just went out, is that a crime?"

"Just what were you doing while you were 'out'?" A woman stepped from the small crowd.

"What is this, an interrogation?" Duo knew that he had probably been seen by someone last night, but he couldn't be sure. There was still a chance they were just furious with him for procrastinating to do his work.

"Stop playing dumb, Maxwell. I saw you carrying a body out last night, and I know it was Hilde." The man who originally began to ask the questions now pointed an accusing finger at Duo. "_You_ killed Hilde last night and then dumped the body!"

Duo took a step back, "I would never kill Hilde. You have no right to accuse me of something you could've dreamed up last night."

It was hard to keep his composure with the guilt of burying Hilde, but Duo wasn't lying when he said that he hadn't murdered Hilde. Though he knew that this wouldn't stay a secret among the caretakers of the Grand Theater of Bordeaux for long. Soon enough this would leak to the owners Bernier and Le Tallec, and they would have no problem with going to the police about this.

The last statement had seemed to make the other people think about the possibility it had just been some man's dream. Half of them seemed to agree, but the others were convinced that Duo did murder Hilde.

But Duo knew that this distraction wouldn't last for long, so he began to carefully back away from the people. They had began to bicker amongst themselves and didn't notice as their supposed 'murderer' began to escape. It wasn't until one woman yelled out for him to stop, but by then it was too late for anyone to do anything.

Duo was in a full sprint putting as much distance between him and all of the caretakers. He wasn't going anywhere intentionally, because the only thing he could think about was how bad he'd screwed up.

'_Now not only is it my fault Hilde is dead, but now everyone will think _I_ killed her!'_

As he continued to just keep running wherever his legs decided to take him; Duo ended up right back at the gates of the cemetery. The same guard was standing at his post, but he looked like he had just woken up. The man still seemed to be in a daze, so Duo went ahead into the rows of graves.

Knowing he was going to end up in front of Hilde's graves, Duo had to force himself to stop and took the chance to sit down behind a large sepulcher most likely for a deceased aristocrat.

'_Why did I run? It only makes it obvious that I'm guilty of something, and that will make all of those people tell the police. I'm sure I'll end up being a wanted person by the afternoon...'_

Duo could already hear the footsteps coming towards him, and knew it was most likely that guard coming to see what he was doing. It wasn't every day that you saw a young man running into a cemetery in the way Duo had. That was the kind of thing that just made you suspect him even more of some wrongdoing.

As the shadow stopped just beside Duo, he noticed the shadow was not that of a man but of a woman. He looked up and found that Relena was giving him a questioning look, "Why were you running like that Duo? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine Relena," Duo started to get up when Relena offered him a hand, and he took it gratefully. "I just started running without really thinking, and I ended up coming here. Why are you in such a dreary place? You can't expect me to believe you have so much time you go strolling through cemeteries in the mornings."

"No, I actually came here to visit my mother actually. She died five years ago from depression." Relena began walking in an aisle of different graves, and Duo followed her. "She became depressed when she had a miscarriage... But I do believe the thing that killed her was the fact my father was never around the entire time. I'm sorry for telling you such a gloomy piece of my past."

Duo didn't know what to say to her as they stopped before a grave with a woman's name. Standing there made him uncomfortable, so he began to head back to the main path. Duo waited for Relena while forcing himself not to look in the direction of Hilde's grave.

"Are you waiting for me?" Relena smiled at him sweetly and then hooked her arm in his. "I can give you a ride back to the theater if you want."

"No thanks, I'm pretty sure I'm fired."

He tried to laugh it off, but Relena could tell that wasn't how he felt.

"Then you can stay at my home for tonight. After all, it is rather lonely with just me and Heero staying there."

She didn't take no for an answer as she pulled him along with her to the entrance. There Heero was waiting for them with Relena's ride home, but Duo didn't want to make himself a troublesome for the young aristocrat.

"No thanks, I don't want to impose on you." Duo tried to pull away, and managed to get away from Relena. But before he could do anything else, Heero had a firm grip on him and guided him towards their ride. "Please let go Heero, I'm just going to be a pest to you two."

"Duo, _we_ both insist that you stay. If you didn't it would hurt Mademoiselle Relena's feelings." Relena had already gotten in and gave a little pout to Duo. "Please take a seat beside her, or else she will continue to tell me about how much she worries about you."

After that, there was no more arguing, as Duo was now on his way to Relena's mansion.

----

**Hi readers! I'm sorry to keep you guys waiting for this chapter... but I can promise the next update will be faster!**

**Please R & R!**

**Shari Maxwell**


	3. Chapter 3

This kind of comfort and sophisticated living was a foreign concept to Duo, as he entered the mansion to find himself surrounded by things probably worth more than him. Relena led him inside by the wrist and pulled him into the foyer.

"Our house is always so empty since we never have any company," She gave her coat to a servant waiting right by the door. "So I hope you'll stay so we can all enjoy some fresh air in this stuffy place."

When Heero came inside Duo was sure to keep a good distance between them, but he knew that the bodyguard was now suspicious. That would probably result in Heero either understanding Duo's discomfort or else make the guy more curious.

"I really don't want to impose on you or your family, and I'm not really used to this kind of lifestyle." Duo tried to back up, but Heero was right behind him to make sure no one left.

Heero stepped out of the way instead of remaining an obstacle to the guest, "We would all truly appreciate it if you at least stay for one night. As much trouble as everyone went through I do believe you at least owe us that courtesy."

Duo hated being forced to stay, but he had no other choice. Relena seemed like the kind of woman who would be hurt if he continued to refuse her invitation to stay. Not to mention she really seemed to trust Duo after telling him all about her mother's death. That wasn't the type of thing you randomly tell an acquaintance you only met two days ago.

Relena really must've thought of Duo as a friend to trust him with that personal information.

'_You shouldn't be here. What you should be doing is trying to get out of Bordeaux as quickly as possible... but then again... Nobody would expect Relena Peacecraft to help out a fugitive she has no real connections with...'_

"I'll stay, but if I start to be troublesome I'll leave right away." Duo was taken aback by the smile that lit up on Relena's face.

"I'm so glad you changed your mind Duo! Heero will show the rooms we have available, and you can pick whichever one you'd like. I have to go and take care of a couple of things, so we can talk later." Relena went up a large staircase directly adjacent to where they were standing.

Once again Duo was left with no choice but to follow Heero as the bodyguard led him up the stairs after Relena. Duo tried hard not to show the uneasiness he was feeling as his heart was pounding heavily in his chest.

'_There's no reason for you to be this nervous, so just cut it out!'_

It seemed he was unable to trick his mind into forgetting Heero was even there. Duo really hated how much the bodyguard was able to make him so vulnerable and insecure.

"You can choose from any room in this hall, but the west wing of the house is for the Peacecrafts' only." Heero instructed as he allowed Duo to get a good look at his boundaries. "You're welcome to explore this area of the house as much as you desire, but don't get lost and be late for dinner."

Duo decided to ignore the last bit of Heero's statement since it sounded like he was being lectured by the bodyguard. As he began to explore the hallway Heero had indicated to choose a room from, he discovered every single room was a bedroom. Duo had expected a lot of rooms, but to have about ten guest rooms in just one hall was overkill in his opinion.

All of the rooms were the same for the most part, but when he walked into the room that was second from the end of the hallway Duo knew it was the room he wanted. Unlike the other rooms he'd previously examined, this one had a balcony that allowed him to look out into the world beyond Bordeaux.

Relena's father had chosen to build their mansion towards the edge of the town, so Duo wasn't forced to look at the city. Now that he'd picked his room, Duo decided it was time to get a better look around the mansion.

As he left the room the young man found himself desperately wanting to bathe. Being surrounded by such an extraordinarily sanitary people and began a search for the bathroom. As he went looking through two other hallways, he was unable to find a washroom, so he asked a maid.

She seemed terrified when he walked up to her, and Duo could see it clearly by the way her slender hands were trembling.

"Listen, I can't find a washroom as you can see I need to get cleaned up. Could you point me in the right direction?" Duo tried not to be intimidating in any manner, but there was no response from the maid except a small whimper. Without thinking of how she would most likely react, Duo reached out and put a hand on the maid's shoulder.

This resulted in her suddenly screaming at the top of her lungs, and startled Duo into making him back far away from her. The maid stopped screaming as there were suddenly two large men behind her reassuring her that it was okay now that they were there.

The maid pointed an accusing finger at Duo and then told the bodyguards what she believed was the truth. "It's a burglar! He's trying to rob the Peacecrafts!"

"No, you're wrong! I'm a _guest_ here! I'm not trying to rob anybody!" Duo attempted to explain what was going on, but the bodyguards weren't listening to anything he was saying.

As the two men came charging at Duo, he had no choice but to run away. He knew it probably wasn't the best idea since it would give the impression he was guilty of something, but he wasn't about to let himself be attacked for no reason.

He took off down the hallway where his own room was, and then went straight for it. Duo wasn't sure about how to get around the house without getting completely lost, but he did know one place that the guards probably wouldn't look. As he flung open the door, he went straight to the balcony and stood on top of the stone railing around the edge of the balcony.

Duo didn't have much of a choice but to hope he was able to grab the edge of the roof or else he would have a long drop. As he pushed off of the ledge he felt the adrenaline rush as his heart pounded, and that terrifying moment of hanging in midair seemed to last forever. But he managed to catch the edge of the roof with one hand and Duo then managed to get a grip with his other hand.

The guards were out on the balcony by then, but Duo had jumped out of their reach and pulled himself up onto the roof. Somehow he'd gotten lucky enough that the two men hadn't even seen him jump onto the roof; instead they were searching down below where even _Duo_ wouldn't dare to jump.

'_You really got lucky this time... but don't expect much more good fortune like that any time soon.'_

"Yeah, yeah..." Duo murmured in reply to himself. The bodyguards disappeared a few seconds later and left Duo alone. He was careful as he crawled farther up onto the roof to where he could slip into the window of the spire extending out from the rooftop.

No longer sure of exactly where he was, Duo decided to have a look around the room.

As he began exploring the area, Duo found that this room apparently hadn't had anyone clean it for a long while. Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust and the only thing that had disturbed the room was Duo. As he was heading to the door he noticed something odd about the floor.

From the door there was a clear path in the dust to a rug about two feet to the left. Duo went towards the rug and was about to pull it up when he heard footsteps coming up what he assumed were stairs on the other side of the door.

Without any real reason, Duo hid behind a large piece of furniture covered by a sheet. There was the sound of a key unlocking the door and someone opening it, as Duo glanced around the corner he saw Heero.

Heero seemed to be scanning the room for traces of a person, and when he saw the open window from across the room it was obvious he knew. Duo couldn't explain why he felt his heart pounding and as much as he wanted to get up and show himself to Heero... his intuition kept telling him not to.

Something about Heero's presence was making him overly cautious and reluctant to be near the man.

"Who's in here?" Heero asked out loud as he began walking down the aisle made by the surrounding junk. Luckily he had chosen to walk the opposite direction of where Duo was hiding, and as Heero turned a corner to head towards the window Duo took his chance.

Duo pushed off into a full sprint and was out the door in record time, but he didn't know if he would be able to get away before Heero came after him. Already Duo could hear something fall over from when he pushed off of, and heard Heero yell something out the door.

'_Shit... I have to get out of plain view before Heero gets out of that room and sees me.'_

That's when he got an idea Duo knew he would regret trying. As he made his way out of the staircase Duo found the first room he could get into and hid in there. He wasn't sure if he'd been too loud when going into the room, but as he heard Heero's footsteps slowing as he reached the bottom of the staircase Duo's heart began to pound even faster.

He watched under the door as Heero's shadow passed by without even hesitating and resulted in Duo letting out a quiet sigh of relief. There was no telling if Heero was still nearby so Duo decided to wait for a few minutes in case the shadow passed by again.

"How will I explain myself if Heero finds me?" Duo asked himself as he sat in a chair in the dark room.

"How indeed will you explain this intrusion?"

A voice asked making Duo jump out of the chair and go for the door. But a pale hand grabbed his wrist and refused to let go of him. Duo looked at the man restraining him and now could see that he resembled Relena except for some minor details.

"You must be Milliardo Peacecraft?" Duo tried not to show his intention of escaping at the first chance but the man wasn't so easily fooled. "I heard you left France years ago."

"Then you must have heard wrong, but I have to wonder who _you _are and why you're all the way up here?" Milliardo refused to loosen his grip, but Duo wasn't sure about explaining the story about everyone chasing him around as a thief.

"Never mind, I'll let you go for now but you cannot tell anyone we spoke or people will know you were up here." The blonde let go Duo and made the younger man stare at Milliardo dumbly as if he couldn't believe it. "You'd best get out of here before Heero gets back or else you'll be in _real_ trouble."

Duo rubbed his wrist as he could see it turning red from the grip Milliardo had on him, and then grabbed the doorknob. "Thanks..."

He opened the door and shut it quietly glad to be away from that man.

All of the bodyguards, including Heero, seemed to have left the area giving Duo time to let his body rest. The adrenaline rush was finally wearing off from earlier and now Duo could feel a horrible headache coming. And on top of all of that...

He was had _no_ idea where he was.

Deciding that he would just have to find his own way back, Duo began to wander down the halls. There were several pieces of priceless art lining the walls and it reminded Duo once again how wealthy the Peacecraft family was.

Eventually after exploring the house for about thirty minutes he finally found himself back by the main staircase. Heero was down in the foyer and hadn't heard him yet, but Duo didn't want to arouse any suspicion as to where he'd been for so long.

Heero turned around abruptly from whatever he'd previously been doing to ask Duo, "Where have you been?"

"I've been looking around for a washroom the whole time, but I couldn't find anybody to ask. Could you point me in the right direction?" Duo tried to be casual about it, but his muscles were about to give out from exhaustion.

"To make sure you don't go wandering anywhere you're not supposed to, I'll show you there myself." Heero began to lead the way back up the staircase and immediately to the east wing of the house. As it turned out there was a bathroom in the hall right next to the one Duo was staying in.

Duo felt a little embarrassed he hadn't even thought to check, but tried not to let that show through. "Thanks, sorry for being an inconvenience."

He was about to leave until Heero grabbed his arm and pinned him against the wall. Already his face was getting hot and Duo couldn't believe Heero was doing this.

"Do you want me to accompany you and help you?"

Just hearing that made Duo practically lose himself, but he didn't want to indulge that desire. Instead he managed to pull loose of the bodyguard and quickly locked himself in the bathroom.

'_Why is he acting that way? Before he seemed like an ordinary guy... sure I was probably the one who gave off the signal that I felt an attraction, but I didn't want something like this.'_

After stripping down and drawing a hot bath, Duo started to force himself to forget about the incident. The only thing he could really do was attempt to avoid Heero as much as possible or else be around Relena all the time. Heero wouldn't dare to do something like that in front of her.

"I wish Hilde was around to see what situation I've gotten myself into now. I'm sure she would've had some type of advice for me." Duo unbraided his hair and then slipped into the bath. The steamy water helped to soothe his headache and let him meditate in a way.

As he washed away all of the accumulated dirt and sweat, it gave Duo a truly refreshing feeling he didn't feel often. Usually he was forced to bathe in freezing water and all Duo ever got was a small amount to rinse his hair.

'_I should hurry up before I make myself too comfortable. Besides I think I'll take a nap before dinner and hopefully I won't get the maid who thinks I'm a burglar...'_

Duo did just that, as soon as he was done bathing he carried his dirty clothes back to his room and dumped them on the floor. He looked through the drawer of a dresser and found a pair of comfortable pants to sleep in.

The bed felt absolutely amazing as well, because he'd never actually slept on anything other than a worn mattress the bed was a wonderful thing. Duo supposed that's why it didn't take him long to fall asleep, in fact it was almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.

After what seemed like only a few minutes Duo was woken up by a knock on the door. Sitting up in bed Duo was almost unsure if this was reality, and almost believed he was still dreaming.

"Monsieur Maxwell?" A man's voice droned from the other side of the door. "Dinner shall be ready soon. Mademoiselle asks for your presence."

"I'll be there in a minute..." Duo told the man while yawning and then heard the man leave.

He struggled with all the blankets he'd tangled himself in, and after a couple minutes managed to get out of the bed. Duo felt rejuvenated as he stretched out his sore muscles.

'_It's too bad I can't live like this everyday. Now I see why everyone wants to be rich, and how wonderful their luxuries are.'_

Too lazy to change out of his sleeping outfit, Duo just grabbed a shirt out of the closet and then left for the dining room. He hoped he wouldn't get lost once again, but doubted it was possible since the ground floor couldn't have _that_ many rooms.

Luckily Duo was right, and it didn't take him long to wander around the first floor before finding the dining room. It was decorated elegantly, as to be expected by the wealthy, and it also included a table too long to ever be completely filled up.

"Duo! There you are!" Relena smiled as she hugged Duo tightly. "You're a bit late, but we can eat now so it's alright."

Relena sat down at the table and Duo was placed in the seat beside her. Fortunately Heero was sat on the other side of the table across from him, but as dinner was being served Duo noticed two seats empty.

"So where is your father?" Duo was just trying to figure out more about Relena Peacecraft and do anything to avoid looking at Heero.

"Father travels often and right now he'd in Paris, but he should be back tomorrow. Though he'll most likely be back in a couple of more days because he always stops a lot along the road to sightsee."

The conversation ended there as all three of them began to eat the delicious food placed before them. Duo tried not to be too rude and use what little table manners he'd actually learned, but it never seemed to phase Relena or Heero in the slightest when he did something wrong.

Yet the other empty seat began to make Duo more and more curious about whom it was for. And then he understood it must be for Milliardo. Yet it appeared that he wasn't commonly seen down there eating with everyone else as nobody had even set his place at the table.

After finishing their meal, Relena took Duo into a library filled with bookshelves covering all the walls. There were several books and they ranged from many different subjects and authors, but Relena had apparently brought Duo in there to sit and talk.

"So Duo you must tell us about yourself, as much as your comfortable telling us." Relena gave of a reassuring presence and it made Duo want to talk about his past, and everything. Yet he didn't want to have Heero there hearing such personal feelings and memories, so he decided to only tell them of his general background.

"I was actually born in America with my parents, but my parents died when I was young from an illness. So after they died I just lived on the streets as an orphan until I got an offer from a man for a job. So I stowed away on a boat to France and ended up working for that man for several years until I found the job at the theater." Duo spoke to them casually, not letting on how uncomfortable he really was revealing his life.

But he continued on anyway, "I've been working at the theater for a couple of years but I was really hoping to get a different job for a while now. So I'm not all that disappointed at being kicked out of that place."

Yet then Duo remembered as the day's events really hit him. Tomorrow Relena and the whole city of Bordeaux would hear about the guy who everyone thought had murdered Hilde. And of course the caretakers of the Theater of Bordeaux would tell the police that it was him, and nobody would have any reason to doubt it either.

'_Tonight I'll have to get away from this city and go somewhere that nobody would be looking for me. But how will I get away?'_

"Relena it's getting late, you should go to bed to be ready for your father's arrival tomorrow." Heero helped Relena up even though you could see she wasn't ready to sleep.

"You know he probably won't be home tomorrow."

"It would just be better to be ready just in case. Besides he assured us that he would _definitely_ be back and with a gift for you."

Relena sighed showing her doubt, but allowed Heero to escort her to the door of the library. Another guard began to follow her once outside of the library, but Heero remained behind with Duo.

As soon as the door was closed Heero wasted no time in getting to the point, "You know you won't be able to stay here for much longer. By tomorrow morning everyone will have heard about the disappearance of that woman and you'll be suspected first."

"Don't you think I've already been trying to figure out what to do?! But it's not like I have any place to go, and I don't have any way to get out of the city without being seen." Duo stood up and walked over to the large window, now basking in the moonlight to shining through.

"Fortunately for you I have a way to get you out of here, but you'll have to give me something in return."

Heero gestured for Duo to follow him as the bodyguard left the room, and not having any other choice Duo did follow. He was led outside to the back of the house where Heero had apparently arranged transportation to get him out of the city.

It may be a carriage but Duo was glad just to have something to get him out secretly.

----

**Sorry for the delay in updating. I assure you the next update will be much sooner. Which brings me to my next point... There is only one more chapter to this series.**

**I know some of you were probably hoping for a longer series, but I already have planned out the ending. Whether you guys like it or not... that's up to you. But I do hope you've enjoyed this chapter and the series so far.**

**Please R & R**

**Shari Maxwell**


	4. Chapter 4

"What do you want as payment?" Duo looked directly into Heero's eyes and already had an idea of the man's answer. As he did so, Duo realized that Heero's eyes were extremely familiar, as if he'd encountered them before.

"You seem to understand my intentions well, but don't expect anything merciful just because of that woman's death." This was a side of Heero that Duo had never seen before. All the other times the bodyguard had spoken with him, the man had been careful to be polite for the most part. "As long as you cooperate with me, I'm sure this can be quick and painless."

Duo didn't know what to do, it's not like he could resist Heero as he knew doing that would only tempt the bodyguard into turning him into the authorities. So he shut his eyes and tried not to think about what was happening to his body. There was one moment though when Duo dared to look at Heero, and the sight horrified him.

_'Those eyes... I remember where I saw them... It was _Heero_ that night and he murdered that man!'_

Heero apparently was not done, but Duo took the chance the only chance he'd have to shove the bodyguard away from him. It caught him by surprise and he fell to the ground while Duo tried to get himself ready to steal a horse.

"Why did you do that?" Heero was obviously pissed as he got up from the ground.

"I remember you now... _You_ killed that man without any mercy, how do I know you won't do the same to me?" Duo was slowly moving towards one of the horses, but Heero pulled his gun out and aimed it at Duo.

"I killed that man to _save_ you, or would you have preferred I left you there to die?" Heero took a few steps closer, but Duo took a few steps more towards the animal when the bodyguard did so.

The two young men were stuck in a stalemate as either Duo would escape on the horse or Heero would shoot him in the process.

"I bet you killed Hilde as well... didn't you? You knew she was special to me and decided to kill her off to have me to yourself!" Duo was the one to now point an accusing finger at Heero as he took a couple more steps.

Heero lost his glare and began to laugh, "Duo Maxwell you really are selfish! Do you really think everything revolves around _you_? I didn't kill Hilde, because she was murdered by some homeless man on the street. He was short on cash and that woman was outside by herself where no one was around to see her get strangled. In fact if anyone is to blame, it would be you!"

Duo didn't want to believe what he was hearing, especially coming from Heero. But it wasn't like Heero had any real reason to lie to him. Yet Duo didn't want to believe that he leaving Hilde alone had gotten her killed, or that all of this was his fault.

_'I can't believe he would stand by and watch Hilde as died... Why would he do that? Just for the fun of watching yet another person take their last breath? Is that it?'_

He didn't want to voice these thoughts, because even Duo didn't believe Heero was _that _heartless. Yet he didn't even know Heero for more than a day or two, so how could he expect the bodyguard to be humane?

"Then you must have seen her being strangled... why the fuck didn't you help her?!"

"Because if she hadn't died, then I wouldn't have gotten my hands on you. Besides Monsieur Milliardo had told me to make sure that she died. That woman has cheated the Peacecrafts' of their money for years now; always stealing from their pockets all the while they trusted her as a good person."

"You're lying; Hilde had more integrity than to stoop to that level. I may not have enough dignity to earn all of my money through labor, but Hilde had her own morals that she always strictly followed." Duo argued back and there seemed to be a wave of realization cross Heero's face.

He took a step closer, "Then that must mean _you _have been the one stealing from the family all of these years... I'm sure Milliardo would just love it if I killed you as punishment."

"I never even knew about the Peacecrafts!"

Duo yelled at the bodyguard, but he wasn't listening. Instead Heero shot at Duo, but somehow he managed to dodge the bullet. He saw the horse close by, not hitched up to the carriage that was probably meant to be his escape.

Never having experiences riding a horse, it felt awkward as Duo hoisted himself up onto the horse's back. From what he'd always observed people doing, Duo used his heels to firmly spur the horse in the side. Though what he hadn't expected was the horse to be as terrified of its unknown rider as it took off in frenzy.

Heero shot at Duo once again and managed to graze his arm, but his aim was off because of the horse's sudden panic. Luckily, Duo had taken the only horse there since the carriage only required one horse to pull it.

'_Fuck... how the hell to I control this animal?!'_

Yet Duo didn't have to worry about much as the horse continued to rampage through the city, running down different streets and Duo managed to get a grip on the bridle someone had put on the horse. As the animal continued racing down the cobblestone paths suddenly Duo could see the edge of town coming fast, and knew he might actually escape with the help of the terrified animal.

The horse seemed to have a different idea in mind, and that was to get the stranger off of his back. As the two of them made it out of the city and began to head into the forest surrounding Bordeaux, and that's when the horse decided to get rid of Duo.

Before he realized it, Duo felt himself flying through the crisp night air and then immense pain as he fell to the ground. Wherever the horse's destination was, it was obvious it wouldn't stop until it was assured Duo wasn't anywhere near it.

"At least I'm away from Heero and that disaster... But where the hell am I going to go now?" Duo stood up, but it seemed he had spoken too soon as there was a loud commotion on the street that sounded similar to hooves on cobblestone.

Duo didn't know what else he could do, so he ducked behind a tree and some tall shrubs. Just as he suspected, Heero was riding on the horse, but hadn't seen the part where Duo had been bucked off. Instead the bodyguard continued chasing the horse which he thought Duo was still riding.

_'I don't know what I can do now... either I get shot by Heero or I go back and get punishment for a crime I didn't commit.'_

Duo decided to take the lesser of two evils and continue away from Bordeaux, and now making it top priority to be as stealthy as possible. Still there was this apprehension that was tearing him apart; the last thing he wanted was to be murdered by Heero for some past mistakes.

Heero had been someone Duo thought he'd truly fell in love with, and yet there had always been something about the young man that set off warning bells. In those Prussian blue eyes there had always been an ulterior motive whenever they'd landed on Duo. But he hadn't wanted to believe that to be true, and had hoped that it was just his paranoia of rejection.

_'But that stupidity is what got that man killed and Hilde... all I ever seem to bring with me is death... What is it about me that kill all the people I hold close? Is that what that woman meant?'_

That woman... that woman... she'd warned him of all of this... so why hadn't he listened?! _Why?!_

"What was it she said...? Something about losing true love and being unable to recover it, but how could she have known?" Without thinking Duo had forgotten to hide his presence in the silent forest, and that's where he'd made a fatal mistake.

"You are clever Duo Maxwell, but not all of us are fooled by a sleight of hand like Relena Peacecraft." Heero had his gun already drawn and practically shoved it into Duo's spine. "Is there anything you'd like to say before you die?"

Duo hesitated, but couldn't explain why.

Deep down he wanted to fall on his knees and beg for his life, and for Heero to forgive him.

And yet he didn't.

"I really thought that the fortune-teller had been talking about _you_ the whole time... I thought that she meant you would be my true love so I didn't take anything she said seriously..." Duo turned around slowly and looked Heero directly in the eye. "She didn't mean you though... I doubt that I could ever fall in love with a heartless killer..."

"You're hardly one to speak Duo, and just because I kill, doesn't mean I'm heartless. There are some people who were never given a chance to be normal like you, and we are the people who suffer most." Heero started to lower his gun and turned away, "There's no point in killing you anymore. I already know that you're suffering a worse punishment than death."

He heard the words Heero had said, but for some reason Duo couldn't believe the man. In his mind he never could've imagined Heero showing a moment of weakness, but the bodyguard had. Now Duo was free to go off on his own...

Yet where could he go?

_'Anywhere's better than here... but Heero's making me pity him with such words.'_

He didn't know what he was thinking, but he went ahead and asked. "Heero why don't we leave Bordeaux together? You're unhappy there and I'm obviously unwanted now after what's happened..."

"You shouldn't run away Duo, and I won't either." Heero stood a few feet away from Duo and turned around. "I know that you aren't responsible for the woman's death and if you use me as a witness in court they'll find you innocent."

"And what about you? I now know you don't enjoy killing people, and yet you continued doing it. Maybe if we left that life behind the two of us could begin anew." Duo felt his face become a little warm against the cool air. "You can't tell me you don't want to leave Heero."

There was a moment of tense silence as the two of them didn't move a muscle. A breeze blew through the trees and a cloud slid in front of the moon now making everything pitch black. Duo let out a breath he hadn't actually known he'd been holding, and finally the bodyguard turned around to face him.

"I couldn't leave Relena alone, and I swore to her years ago to forever protect her."

Heero began to walk back toward the city almost as if nothing of their chase had even happened, but Duo ran after him and grabbed onto Heero's arm. He had a grin on his face as he looked at Heero, and then faced Bordeaux once again.

'_I don't know why the hell I'm setting myself up to be shot down later... but I can't leave Heero. Being with him I feel like I can accomplish anything.'_

"Are you sure you'll trust me to help you Duo?" Heero looked directly at Duo as he asked.

Duo rolled his eyes at the bodyguard, "If you wanted to ruin my life you would've shot me by now."

'_Maybe he's right... perhaps I am trusting my emotions too much.'_

Instead Duo let go of Heero's arm and grabbed the other man's hand instead to begin pulling him along. At first Heero's hand was just limp in Duo's hand, but after a while the bodyguard returned the grip firmly.

Knowing that walking back to that city would only lead to the uncertainty of whether his life would be cut short, and yet Duo didn't fear it. There was such a swelling in his heart as he gripped Heero's hand that it seemed like he could never let it go. As the two young men neared the edge of the city after just a few minutes they stopped before stepping into Bordeaux.

"Are you sure you really are prepared to go through a trial? Being an immigrant people might treat you even more harshly than normal."

"You know, death doesn't seem as scary when you already know your in for a miserable life." Duo looked at Heero trying to fake his indifference to a grim future, but the bodyguard wasn't so easily fooled.

He caught Duo off guard as Heero kissed the young man.

"Don't think of your future as condemned yet Duo..."

It was pretty plain to see for Duo, that he wouldn't make it past that trial. Yet he didn't want to think about any of that, all of that could wait. Right now all that mattered to him was Heero.

Duo wasn't sure whether this was really appropriate to say at the moment, but he felt he needed to. "Heero I really care about you, and if something goes wrong I just don't want you to dwell on me. If I am found guilty and... just please don't live this rest of your life alone and make yourself unhappy."

Heero didn't say anything in response, but Duo was pretty sure Heero got the message. And now that he'd told Heero of his feelings Duo decided not to worry about anything that night.

All of those dreadful thoughts could wait until tomorrow.

----

**Nothing really to say. This story was just something that continued helping me write, and I know it isn't great but I'm still developing as a writer. **

**I do have a sequel to Vampire's Servant coming out called Vampire Love Child if you guys would prefer to read a better story. Sorry if this ending wasn't satisfying, but it's how I felt like ending it.**

**Shari Maxwell**


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